The tables were covered in white paper. Crayons, pastels, and smooth sticks waited quietly. Then came Lucy’s glittery purse—her 8-year-old hands had filled it with stones to pass along, one by one, to the strangers around the table.
We traced them. Pushed them. Held them.
Then we let the colors lead:
-Red for emotion.
-Yellow for curiosity.
-Blue for memory.
Each color came with music, with story, with space.
At the Museum of Wisconsin Art, we made marks not for meaning but for presence.
Thank you to Ann Marie and MOWA for the invitation and trust. And thank you to the participants—some new friends, some old students—for showing up and making lines that listened before they spoke.
I had a rock tumbler as a child and really enjoyed it. When my youngest was a child we bought her one. She was eager to enjoy it too, but somewhere after starting on that path, we lost track and it everything inside turned into a solid mass. We tossed it and forgot about it. On a recent beach trip, I collected handfuls of rocks, as I am always likely to do, and, upon return, remembered how I loved my childhood rock tumbler. I immediately researched, ordered and eagerly anticipated its delivery. Of course, with Amazon Prime, that was only a couple day’s wait. As soon as I unboxed it I thought “what am I doing?” I have neither time, nor space for yet another hobby. I thought “what will I DO with a pile of polished, pretty rocks?” I would gather them in my hands and feel their silky smoothness. I would likely gather them in some beautiful glass bowl and…then what? I have toddler grand kids frequently at my home. They put small colorful things in their mouths and up their noses and feed them to the dogs regularly. And I don’t even have a single space to display a bog bowl of pretty rocks. So I quickly decided “I’m Returning the Rock Tumbler” and will, for NOW, stick to painting them when the mood strikes.
"Her cricket kids traipse in to wash their hands." Cricket is a popular bat-and-ball game in Australia where the winning team gets to eat crickets at the end of a match.
A detailed hand-drawn ink and wash illustration featuring two majestic dogs that look like statues perched above a historic gothic cathedral. This piece captures the timeless atmosphere of old European streets, blending architectural precision with the organic soul of a loyal companion cast in stone. Perfect for fans of urban sketching, dark academia, and classical monument art.
A hand-drawn illustration featuring a classic to-go coffee cup overflowing with ibuprofen pills instead of liquid. Perfectly capturing the essence of a rough morning, a long shift, or just the reality of "adulting.", text that reads: Venti Ibuprofen Kind of Day
The Tool Bench marks my 50th canvas—completed exactly one year to the day after I finished my very first one. This piece is a tribute to work, memory, and the quiet corners where both creativity and responsibility live.
Drawn entirely freehand, it’s built like a snapshot of a lived-in workspace: mismatched tools, worn wood, scribbled reminders, and the little personal things that actually make a place yours. The clipboard holds a “Honey-Do” list that never seems to end. The Polaroid-style sketch of my wife sits taped to the wall like a reminder of why the work matters. The shadows on the back wall match the tools lying on the bench—suggesting a moment in progress, a task paused, life happening between motions.
A striking, high-contrast graphite study of a hand in the act of writing. Created in a rapid 45-minute sitting through self-observation, this piece captures the intricate anatomy and focused tension of the artist's own hand as it holds the pen. The tip being pencil the top being pen and finger tips slightly smudged incorporate all aspects of the mediums used to create it.
A couple of plant lovers, a sunflower and a cactus are holding hands, the sunflower wears a spikes collar, showing she has a preference for dangerous things, like his cactus boyfriend, they are perfect for each other.
(Ps its my 21th / 22th time drawing my oc Junior in my Sneezy art and doodle addict era and thrid time in my counter social era but not my first time drawing my sml trans woman Jewish 6'2 woman oc exp I drew her during her now being 8-9 months pregnant btw still.
(PS 8th junior drawing on sneezy art and forth time on doodle addict btw.)
*PS photo 1 is better
Finished ver then photo 2 is inked ver.*
*Ps: it's not my best work yet! But its one my most inspiringwirks so far! But it's bit if an improvement of last time an few days ago even I took 3 - 4 days aka almost an week to draw this I started it on September 20th and finished it on September 23th and I liked better than last junior I made last time and better then the
inked ver btw!*.
(Ps jeffoween 2025 is coming soon like next month or 2 weeks later
The other day I saw a photograph of a man in a handmade costume of a frog with a huge pack of cigarettes on his back and holding a cigarette.
Then I tried to find it again and I am coming up blank. So blank as a a matter of fact, that now I am not even sure if I didn't see it in a dream.
If you have seen this photo, let me know!
This pen-and-ink illustration was done for the cover of a church statement of faith.
I named this illustration Foundation of America because I believe this country was
founded by Christians who had strong faith in the God of the Bible, and through
faith, prayer, and sacrifice, the patriots overcame the mighty British military. By the
hand of God, a new nation was born: the United States of America. When the United
States was filled with God-fearing people, God raised the country to be a super power,
and the world envied the United States and flocked to her shores, the land of freedom
and opportunity.
Now this country has forgotten the God who gave birth to her and now is setting
up new idols to worship: idols of wood, stone, metals that do not hear or see or
care. Because the United States has forgotten God, it has been plagued with storms,
tornadoes, floods, droughts and her enemies are waging war with her, waiting to
celebrate her fall.
It is my hope and prayer that people who love this country will return to honoring God
and return to giving Him thanks for all the great works He has done for this nation
and turn from our sins and follow God by obeying His Word: the Holy Bible. That
God will remove His hand of judgment and His blessing may return to our country.
This church was fist built in 1890 and is still being used as a church. It is in Norristown,
Pennsylvania. This was the first Bible-believing church I attended when I became a
Christian.
(October 28, 2017)
